This Blistered Shishito Pepper Chickpea Salad Sandwich is the perfect balance of savory, tangy, and sweet. Perfect for meal prep and easy to make using simple ingredients.
Why You’ll Love This Blistered Shishito Pepper Chickpea Salad Sandwich
- Easy to make. The most work being done is done upfront with cooking the peppers, garlic and onion. Once that is done, you’re just making your sauce and mixing everything together in a bowl. I’ve also included alternatives if you’d prefer to skip the cooking step altogether.
- Great to meal prep. When I used to pack lunches for work, chickpea salads were a go-to for me. The filling holds up really well in the fridge, making it perfect for simple meals throughout the week.
- Packed with nutrition. This sandwich provides fiber, protein, iron, and nourishing antioxidants.
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- Beans: I used canned chickpeas, but feel free to swap them with cannellini beans instead.
- Shallot: You can substitute with 1/2 of a small red or white onion.
- Scallion: This can be swapped for minced red or white onion.
- Tahini: It’s important to use good-quality tahini for the best taste. I highly recommend trying brands from local Middle Eastern grocers when possible. Personally, I’ve been really loving the Al Wadi brand.
- Shishito Peppers: These peppers have a lovely savory flavor. I’ve found this pepper at my local grocery store as well as a nearby H-Mart. If shishito peppers aren’t available, you can use poblano peppers or jarred roasted red bell peppers. If using poblano peppers, check the FAQ for how to blister them.
- Lime: Fresh lime is needed for both the juice and zest. You can substitute with lemon if preferred.
- Dijon Mustard: Adds a little tang to the sauce, but feel free to add extra white wine vinegar if preferred.
- Capers: Optional, but if you don’t have them, minced green olives make a good alternative.
- Nutritional Yeast: Adds a savory depth of flavor to the sauce. You can omit it and adjust with salt to taste, or swap with a teaspoon of yellow miso paste.
- Cilantro: You can substitute with some fresh parsley leaves.
How to Make a Blistered Shishito Pepper Chickpea Salad Sandwich
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shishito peppers and spread them out in the pan. Cook undisturbed for 2–3 minutes, until the peppers begin to blister. Flip them, season with a pinch of salt, and cook for another 2–3 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a plate and set aside.
In the same pan, add the remaining oil, shallots, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Sauté for 4–5 minutes, or until the shallots begin to turn golden brown around the edges.
Transfer the shallots, garlic, and any oil left in the pan to a large glass measuring cup or blender. Add the tahini, vinegar, caper brine, mustard, syrup, nutritional yeast, the zest of 1 lime, the juice of half a lime, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and the cold water. Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick or difficult to blend, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, blending until the desired consistency is reached.
To a large mixing bowl, add the chickpeas and use a fork to mash them into a flaky consistency. I like to mash at least 2/3 or more of the chickpeas, but feel free to adjust the consistency to your preference. Taste the dressing and adjust the salt, sweetness, or acidity as needed.
Dice up half of the peppers then add them to the bowl of chickpeas along with the scallions, cilantro, and capers. Pour in about half the tahini sauce then fold everything together until combined.
To assemble your sandwich, spread some tahini sauce over each slice of toasted bread. Layer one slice with some lettuce, a few scoops of your chickpea mixture, a few of the leftover shishito peppers, and additional cilantro and scallions. Top with the other slice of bread, cut in half, and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- How to simplify. Save time by using jarred roasted red bell peppers instead of cooking the shishito peppers. To skip the cooking step all together, blend the tahini sauce with 1 clove of grated garlic and 1-2 chopped scallion to replace the sautéed garlic and shallots.
- Adjust the amount of sauce used. I start by adding about half the sauce to the chickpea mixture. If the mixture is too dry, feel free to stir in more.
- Add more protein. Fold in hemp hearts and/or more nutritional yeast into the chickpea salad. For reference, 3 tbsp of hemp hearts adds 10g of protein, and 2 tbsp of nutritional yeast adds about 6g of protein to the whole dish.
Frequently Asked Questions
The chickpea salad can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
The chickpea filling and tahini sauce are naturally gluten-free. The only change would be how you choose to serve it. Feel free to enjoy with gluten-free crackers, stuffed in a gluten-free wrap, or with your favorite gluten-free grain.
Try blistering poblano peppers. To do this, place the poblano peppers on a baking tray and broil them in the oven for 5 minutes. Flip and broil for another 5 minutes. Place the hot peppers in a bowl and cover so they can steam. Peel off or rub off the skins (it doesn’t have to be perfect!). Dice and use in the recipe as desired.
Make It Balanced
The chickpea filling is perfect for sandwiches, but there are plenty of other ways to serve it as a complete meal:
- Wrap: Stuff the filling into your favorite whole grain or gluten-free wrap along with any additional veggies you like.
- Dip: Use the filling as a dip with baked chips or whole grain crackers.
- Adult “Lunchables”: Fill a sectioned lunch container with the chickpea filling, another with sliced pitas, and another with your favorite veggies.
- Pinwheels: Spread the mixture over a large tortilla, add some veggies, then roll it up and cut into pieces (similar to how you cut sushi rolls).
More Plant-Based Lunch Ideas
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then let me know what you thought in the comments below! And if you loved it, don’t forget to rate it too. Feel free to follow on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok for the latest nutrition tips and recipe videos.
Description
This Blistered Shishito Pepper Chickpea Salad Sandwich is the perfect balance of savory, tangy, and sweet. Perfect for meal prep and easy to make using simple ingredients.
For the filling
For assembling
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shishito peppers and spread them out in the pan. Cook undisturbed for 2–3 minutes, until the peppers begin to blister. Flip them, season with a pinch of salt, and cook for another 2–3 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a plate and set aside.
- In the same pan, add the remaining oil, shallots, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Sauté for 4–5 minutes, or until the shallots begin to turn golden brown around the edges.
- Transfer the shallots, garlic, and any oil left in the pan to a large glass measuring cup or blender. Add the tahini, vinegar, caper brine, mustard, syrup, nutritional yeast, the zest of 1 lime, the juice of half a lime, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and the cold water. Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick or difficult to blend, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, blending until the desired consistency is reached.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the chickpeas and use a fork to mash them into a flaky consistency. I like to mash at least 2/3 or more of the chickpeas, but feel free to adjust the consistency to your preference. Taste the dressing and adjust the salt, sweetness, or acidity as needed.
- Dice up half of the peppers then add them to the bowl of chickpeas along with the scallions, cilantro, and capers. Pour in about half the tahini sauce then fold everything together until combined.
- To assemble your sandwich, spread some tahini sauce over each slice of toasted bread. Layer one slice with some lettuce, a few scoops of your chickpea mixture, a few of the leftover shishito peppers, and additional cilantro and scallions. Top with the other slice of bread, cut in half, and enjoy!
Notes
How to simplify. Save time by using jarred roasted red bell peppers instead of cooking the shishito peppers. To skip the cooking step all together, blend the tahini sauce with 1 clove of grated garlic and 1-2 chopped scallion to replace the sautéed garlic and shallots.
Adjust the amount of sauce used. I start by adding about half the sauce to the chickpea mixture. If the mixture is too dry, feel free to stir in more.
Add more protein. Fold in hemp hearts and/or more nutritional yeast into the chickpea salad. For reference, 3 tbsp of hemp hearts adds 10g of protein, and 2 tbsp of nutritional yeast adds about 6g of protein to the whole dish.
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